The family, friends and supporters of people missing people are marching through London today to highlight the lack of support available to them, the ones left wondering what's happened to their loved, vanished ones. The charity Missing People provides some support and advice and maintains a register of missing people. Importantly, they recognise the right of people to go missing and stay missing. But the organisers of today's march, mothers searching for lost sons,......

It's not quite the same as having the local bobby back on the beat, but a scheme trialled in south London that addresses public unease with the remote, impersonal nature of modern policing is set to be rolled out across London. The £325 million Home Office plan will see each council ward assigned a team of police and community support officers, with residents given a mobile phone number and email address to contact their......

Londonist asks that most pressing of daily concerns: where to go on your lunch break. M Manzes 87 Tower Bridge Road SE1 4TW 020 7407 2985 Nearest Tube: Borough Mon: 11am - 2pm Tue-Thurs: 10.30am - 2pm Fri: 10am - 2.30pm Sat: 10am - 2.45pm Expect to Pay: Between £2.70 and £4.90 for pie and mash, £3.20 for eels and mash. Rating: 9 out of 10 Ahh traditional London fare. Food born out of......

And now for something completely different. We stumbled upon Joey Herzfeld and some of Hooverville at the Carling Academy back in January. Their extraordinarily different sound, great musicianship and stage presence alienated half the crowd and transfixed the rest. Were they mental or brave musical pioneers? We couldn't resist snagging them for an interview purely on the basis of a song called "Cavity Search" and a frenetic gypsy dancing interlude. It went like this.........

This is what we have learned whilst you have been browsing through holiday brochures this weekend: A pub in Tottenham with a really bad record for trouble is to be shut down. Londonist can think of a few more that should be… A gang fight at a greengrocers has left one man stabbed to death. A met. policeman accused of killing his wife has been found dead. As has his former mother-in-law. People have......

Have a nice relaxing Sunday in front of the telly, resting up for that last minute dash at shopping tomorrow. Here are a few options you might want to take a peek at. On TV, Londonist likes: Heston’s Perfect Christmas Dinner (BBC2, 14:45-15:45) If you’re feeling nervous about cooking Christmas dinner, this maybe isn’t the programme for you. You’ll very likely feel intimidated and that your dinner doesn’t match up. But if you want......

It’s almost Christmas! Over the Christmas holidays, we’ll be here every day recommending the best of what’s on television. We’ll do the hard work, slogging through the TV listings, and let you sit back with a nice hot drink and a mince pie. Enjoy! On TV, Londonist likes: Strictly Come Dancing (BBC1, 17:50-19:15 and 21:25-22:10) While we haven’t been keeping up with the excitement of this year’s dancing fun, we know lots of you......

Every day this month the Londonist team will be pointing you in the direction of a Christmas present that (with a bit of luck) you won't already have on your list. Climb up onto our collective lap and we'll see what we can move from our sack to your stockings... Make Lounge is one of those ideas that is so great, you'll wish you thought of it yourself. When journalist and Make Lounge founder......

Fed up of the froth, mirth and sentimentality of the Yuletide muzak yet? To bring you an antidote and alternative soundtrack for your Christmas holidays we caught up with the utterly charming Roi Robertson of Mechanical Cabaret over a sorbet and peppermint tea and ruminated on the band's latest single, pastoral London views and the fact that we've never seen him and Noel Fielding in the same room together... Who's in the band? I......

There have been big changes at Londonist this year - we've had new staff, a new commenting system and a brand new tagging system installed so we had a lot to celebrate at the Christmas party. And as we're not keen on making trouble for ourselves, only for other people, we thought we would go to a party already arranged for us; last night a hearty party of Londonistas headed off to the Barbican......

Trying to end the year on a positive, if unglamorous note: Olympic demolition complete and Games declared on track West Ham United get behind campaign to stop young people killing each other, Home Office campaign criticised for not being strategic enough Winehouse arrested, bailed and declared biggest selling artist of the year while Dad slags off Doherty in the press Look out for Lily blooming in the spring Sobering image of Plaistow Fire Station......

Speaking of property, rumours are circulating that the Fitrovian telecoms stick could be transformed into a boutique hotel. Not the beanpole part, but the bulky base areas. BT have appointed a team of designers to look into the concept, reports the Times, picking up on a subscription-only piece in the Estates Gazette. In addition, the famous rotating restaurant could become a public space for the first time since a bomb attack in 1971. If......

Every day this month the Londonist team will be pointing you in the direction of a Christmas present that (with a bit of luck) you won't already have on your list. Climb up onto our collective lap and we'll see what we can move from our sack to your stockings... How do you get people to cycle more? Ken would like to know I'm sure. Well, let's hope someone buys him some Green Knickers......

Heads up people: the East London Line closes this Saturday. It will undergo a magical transformation that will take rather a long time but the line will reemerge from a 3 year chrysalis as a beautiful section of the newly tangerine London Overground network, linking the North and East London railways. You'll eventually be able to travel from Richmond in the West all the way round in a massive arterial horseshoe via the existing......

Straight out of Steptoe and Son - bogus bin men bag bonuses. Straight out of a Whitehall farce - illegal immigrant home office worker to be deported. Straight out of a Bond movie - driverless people shuttles at Heathrow. Straight out of real life - the bit-too-much-booze bus. Straight out of a Dickensian novel - immigrant detention at Heathrow is getting worse. Reminds-us-of-the-end-of-the-world piccie courtesy of paniek’s flickr photo stream.......

Remember the pigeon feeding turf wars of 2006? Well, the Pigeon Action Group are back in the news. A candlelit vigil was held at midday today on Trafalgar Square's north terrace (in daylight?) to highlight the plight of the poor starving birds. Westminster City Council closed the loophole that had allowed certain pigeon protestors to feed the birds on a daily basis back in September to make the public square more hygenic and pleasant.......

The Rainbow is long gone, the Hammersmith Palais now lingers only in the memory and even that good old grubby beer stained shit-hole that is the loveable Astoria is under threat. Gigs are selling out in minutes, replacing restaurants and cinemas as the preferred venue for gormless gobblers to converse after work, and yet the property developers keep their beady eyes focused on every venue lease going. How are we going to find the......

It’s the week before Christmas, and like us, you’re probably panicking because you’ve still got loads of shopping to do. If you have a spare night when you’re not out at wild and crazy office Christmas parties or fighting the crowds on Oxford Street, here are a few suggestions to keep you entertained. On TV, Londonist likes: Monday, 17 December Dispatches: How Safe Are Your Christmas Toys? (Channel 4, 21:00-22:00) If you’re Christmas shopping......

Londonist went on a sojourn to Manchester recently, and loved the place. Home of iconic bands, incessant rain, pretty canals, and some of Britain's most interesting modern architecture outside London, Manchester has a lot to offer. If only there were a way to get there that didn't involve spending half your life savings on an overpriced, inflexible rail ticket. Never let it be said that Virgin Trains can't spot an opening in the market.......

Pete Doherty wants to run the London marathon. We're sure many people will sneer at this idea, what with Pete's history of performance restricting drugs, his post-rehab bloatedness, and his jaunty hat, which will have to be held on with an elastic strap if he is to continue to look like a handsome East end libertine/bohemian counter cultural icon/twat* (*delete as appropriate). However, we welcome his decision to take up exercise. We're sure that he's......

This Week In London’s History Monday – 17th December 1983: An IRA car bomb explodes near Harrods in Knightsbridge, killing six people (including three police officers) and injuring a further 85 Christmas shoppers. Tuesday – 18th December 1890: The world’s first ‘deep-level’ electric tube line opens, connecting Stockwell and King William Street. As we mentioned last year, the City & South London Railway would later become a part of the Northern Line as we......

This is what we have learnt this weekend whilst you have been making your mince pies: The tube link to Heathrow Airport is celebrating its 30th birthday. Spicing up Christmas - they’re back and better than ever. Apparently. Appalling teenage violence continues. Perhaps they should all be kept indoors from the ages of 12-19. The Savoy Hotel has closed for a facelift. As one does when one reaches a certain age. ‘Cept this one......

This weekend column is brought to you by the founders of Niceties Tokens, Liz and Pete of Team Nice. 29. Bystander Eageration… After being made redundant the other week, I was offered some work by a friend who runs a market stall selling Christmas gifts. It’s chilly work but my silly dance moves to keep warm have amused the customers, and their weird behaviour has kept me very interested in them. Weirdly, the less......

Damien Hirst has made the Tate's Christmas by gifting them 4 of his art works. The infamous cow and calf bisected and suspended in formaldehyde, "Mother and Child Divided" is the Turner Prize winning crowning glory. This is a high profile donation, timed for maximum festivity and goodwill but Hirst's generosity is not spontaneous or even his own idea. He pledged works to the Tate back in 2004 as part of the Building the......

Every day this month the Londonist team will be pointing you in the direction of a Christmas present that (with a bit of luck) you won't already have on your list. Climb up onto our collective lap and we'll see what we can move from our sack to your stockings... If one of our friends asks us to pick a pub to meet in a bit of town we're not familiiar with one of......

Our friends at the South East London Folklore Society (SELFS) will be hailing and celebrating Yule tonight with a good old fashioned game of pin the tail on the Yule Cat. There will also be beer, chips, storytelling, songs and games. If you're a fan of urban legends, One Eye Grey, Jack the Ripper walks, gory London histories, oddities, nooks and crannies, the occult, paganism, Morris dancing, dragons, witchcraft and the like, you need......

We all know that there is an alternative to the traditional stuck with the family and mired in food and booze Christmas we moan about on an annual basis. But it takes quite a lot to change habits and risk something new. Skilled people - this is your year. Crisis needs you! As well as offering warmth, sustenance and merriment Crisis' Open Christmas also provides essential services to its homeless clientele. Opticians, dentists and......

Every day this month the Londonist team will be pointing you in the direction of a Christmas present that (with a bit of luck) you won't already have on your list. Climb up onto our collective lap and we'll see what we can move from our sack to your stockings... For the friends and family members who seem to always be busy with art exhibitions, arthouse films, dance, theatre and music of a more......

Forgive us for suggesting you go a venue two nights in a row, but tomorrow night but this sounds ace, if painful. Tomorrow is the latest installment of Cringe London. Based on a New York idea (of course), the night invites you to listen to other people's teenage diaries as well as reading aloud your own. Taking place once a month, 20 and 30 somethings get together to shame their cringetastic teenage diaries including......

Langdon Park DLR station opened yesterday, to initially no fanfare, until Ken turned up with some free Oyster cards. Diamond Geezer has blogged in heartfelt detail about the "shiny alien mothership" lighting up a neglected, marginalised area. Langdon Park now easily links up with Canary Wharf and Stratford, where a second platform was also officially opened yesterday, possibly anticipating the immediate influx of people escaping Tower Hamlets for a day. TFL are consulting about......